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Retail incentives to be considered

Incentives used to develop retail in Bartlesville are currently being considered by the Bartlesville Development Corporation.

BDC President/CEO David Wood said Thursday at a BDC board meeting that the next step in the retail process is to research what needs to be done to boost retail.

“Really what this is, is take some time to think about what do we need to do regarding next steps on the retail question,” said Wood. “Should there be incentives? If so, for who? How much? Under what terms?”

Wood proposed that the city council hold a workshop for interested parties, including the community, that could answer these questions.

City Manager Ed Gordon suggested that an executive group be put in place to “work up discussion topics and parameters” before a workshop is created.

“Perhaps we could put together kind of an executive committee, like with two of the council members and several of the BDC board, and let that group work out more of the details together and make that into the form of a workshop to the council after they put together a program that both the BDC and the council believe they can live with,” said Gordon.

Gordon said an executive group would be beneficial so that “it doesn’t take so much time, both sides have input, know where each is going and then bring that to the council.”

Gordon said the council would also have the benefit of research released from the previous retail survey conducted by economic development and site selection consulting firm AngelouEconomics.